Giveadamn Brown: A Novel

by Robert Deane Pharr

In this surreal dark comedy, Larry "Giveadamn" Brown is transformed from a country bumpkin into a crime kingpin when he inherits the Harlem dope and numbers empire of his Uncle Harry. Unable to match firepower with the competition―Sonny, a coiffed millionaire; Baby Doll, a 300-pound Jesus freak; and Studs, a ruthless lesbian―Giveadamn devises a shrewd scheme. His secret weapon: the Golden Fleece, a fantastical machine that defies all known laws of chemistry and physics. When word of it leaks out, Harlem is never going to be the same . . . .

Genres: Fiction

238 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1978

About the author

Novelist. Rediscovered in the late 1960s after an interrupted career, Robert Deane Pharr constructs a critique of the American dream and the African American community's ability to attain it. As a social critic, literary realist, and pioneer in the exploration of the mechanics of writing, Robert Deane Pharr stands as an exemplar for authors who followed him.

Reviews

[Andy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Casual yarn about a Southern kid transplanted in Harlem who gets a $1000 bill kickback from a teenage drug dealer. He spends the whole load on 1,000 $1.00 lottery tickets and hits a $100,000 jackpot with it, so needless to say everybody in Harlem wants to get in his face.

R.D. Pharr writes in a Bukowski-Willeford style that doesn't skimp on humor or characterization, and in a better world some wild and wooly director like George Armitage or Jack Hill would be directing this killer tome of blaxploitation.

[Graham P · Rating 2 out of 5]

What I hoped would be a hard-knuckled, surreal caper ended up being a bit of a letdown. When it comes to Harlem crime fiction, there's Chester Himes high on the throne. Everybody else takes the scraps.

[death spiral · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not totally certain about my criteria for what makes a crime novel “good,” but I def felt this was shakier and less controlled than Himes. At times reminded me of Abel Ferrara’s King of New York for the way it has an unexpected interest in the interior lives of drug kingpins.

[H. Sexton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Adding Robert Deane Pharr to my list of favorite authors. I loved this book.